Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) Given New $36.00 Price Target at Hovde Group

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) had its price objective increased by stock analysts at Hovde Group from $32.50 to $36.00 in a research note issued on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Hovde Group’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 18.15% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on BFST. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research report on Monday, July 6th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $33.00 target price on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Stephens set a $33.00 target price on shares of Business First Bancshares in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Business First Bancshares has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.25.

Business First Bancshares Trading Down 0.1%

NASDAQ:BFST opened at $30.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Business First Bancshares has a fifty-two week low of $22.56 and a fifty-two week high of $31.57. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $29.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.22. The stock has a market cap of $995.76 million, a PE ratio of 10.81 and a beta of 0.78.

Business First Bancshares (NASDAQ:BFST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $91.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $91.31 million. Business First Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.10% and a net margin of 17.02%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Business First Bancshares will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Business First Bancshares news, Director George W. Cummings III sold 15,000 shares of Business First Bancshares stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.54, for a total value of $428,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 281,180 shares in the company, valued at $8,024,877.20. The trade was a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 36,595 shares of company stock worth $1,031,732 over the last 90 days. 5.67% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Business First Bancshares by 115.4% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 38,485 shares of the company’s stock valued at $937,000 after purchasing an additional 20,620 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Business First Bancshares by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,343 shares of the company’s stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 624 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Business First Bancshares by 1,532.5% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 159,481 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,883,000 after purchasing an additional 149,712 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Business First Bancshares by 8.4% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 85,408 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,080,000 after buying an additional 6,596 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in Business First Bancshares during the first quarter worth $1,150,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.35% of the company’s stock.

Business First Bancshares News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Business First Bancshares this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BFST reported Q2 earnings of $0.71 per share, edging past analyst expectations by $0.01 and up from $0.66 a year ago, a sign of steady profitability. Business First Bancshares earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, signaling continued capital return to shareholders and implying an annualized yield of about 2.0%. Business First Bancshares dividend announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Sector-wide commentary on regional banks was supportive, with lenders reporting stronger net interest income, loan and deposit growth, and improved credit quality, which may be helping sentiment around BFST. Regional banks earnings sector update
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue for the quarter came in at $91.0 million, slightly below the $91.31 million consensus estimate, so the quarter was a modest earnings beat but not a clear top-line surprise. Business First Bancshares earnings report

Business First Bancshares Company Profile

Business First Bancshares, Inc is the bank holding company for Business First Bank, a regional community bank headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, the company provides a full suite of commercial and retail banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals and individual consumers. Business First Bancshares operates under a community-focused model, emphasizing personalized service, local decision-making and relationship banking.

The company’s primary business activities include commercial lending, treasury and cash management, and deposit services.